Role of Nurses and Midwives in Emergencies and Disasters: Case Studies from South East Asia

Emergencies and disasters are a part of everyday life and they are increasing. On average, 40 per cent of the globe's “natural” catastrophes occur in South East Asia. One of the most devastating disasters in recent history was the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004 that killed over 240,000 people across 13 countries. Due to climate change, the increasing severity of meteorological events, increasing numbers of people living in precarious situations, irregular migration, urbanization, environmental degradation, large scale displacement, public health crises and civil conflicts, emergencies and disasters are very common in the South East Asia region. Preparedness and mitigation are essential in reducing coping failures and the negative impacts of emergencies and disasters on communities. The presentation will analyze case studies from 7 South East Asia countries to highlight roles and practices for nurses and midwives in emergencies and disasters. The case studies are unique reports of the roles of nurses and midwives during disasters as well as their many issues, challenges and constraints. The case studies are personal accounts of nurses and midwives working during disasters and emergencies and identify good practices and lessons learned on implementation and constraints. Nurses and midwives are the largest sector of the health care workforce and can lead the movement towards increased emergency and disaster preparedness. Nurses and midwives must “scale up” knowledge, skills, practices and abilities to meet ever increasing demands for disaster preparedness. Successful interventions and practices are analyzed with an eye towards future scaling up of nursing and midwifery capacities.